First Lady Melania Trump sent a message to Federal Trade Commission officials on Wednesday, pledging continued support for protecting children from online exploitation as the agency hosted a workshop examining how tech companies harm young users.
The message, delivered to participants of the FTC’s “Attention Economy: How Big Tech Firms Exploit Children and Hurt Families” workshop, signals the Trump administration’s focus on digital safety for minors.
“I look forward to hearing the outcomes from this workshop so we can continue to shape federal policies that protect children,” Melania said in her written remarks. “We will work together to develop tools to empower parents and youth, and we will lean on tech executives in the private sector to do their part.”
The First Lady thanked FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson for his leadership on the issue. Ferguson, in turn, credited Melania with helping pass recent legislation targeting online abuse.
“I’m also incredibly grateful to the First Lady for her leadership on the ‘TAKE IT DOWN Act,'” Ferguson said. “Getting legislation done in any circumstance is very difficult, and the ‘TAKE IT DOWN’ Act could not have gotten through Congress without the First Lady’s intervention and leadership.”
The law, signed by President Donald Trump in May, allows victims to request the swift removal of non-consensual explicit imagery online. That includes content created by artificial intelligence.
Melania championed the legislation as part of her BE BEST initiative, which focuses on children’s well-being and online protection. The workshop appearance continues that advocacy.
In her full message to workshop attendees, Melania acknowledged meeting survivors and families affected by non-consensual intimate imagery.
“Let their courage continue to inspire us to find solutions to protect children and youth from online harm,” she wrote.
Still, the First Lady emphasized that passing the TAKE IT DOWN Act marked progress but not completion. The administration plans to develop additional tools for parents while pressing tech executives to increase safeguards.